DOE report estimates new nuclear capacity potential at existing plants

September 13, 2024, 9:07AMANS Nuclear Cafe
Data from Table 1 from DOE’s SA&I report shows the potential new nuclear generation at 145 coal power plant sites with nameplate capacities above 600 MWe. (Source: DOE, Evaluation of Nuclear Power Plant and Coal Power Plant Sites for New Nuclear Capacity)

The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy has released a new report estimating that there may be the potential to install 60 GWe–95 GWe of new capacity at currently operating and recently retired nuclear power plants in the United States. The report also evaluated the potential of building new nuclear plants near current and retired coal power plants. The report, titled Evaluation of Nuclear Power Plant and Coal Power Plant Sites for New Nuclear Capacity, was prepared as part of DOE-NE’s Systems Analysis and Integration (SA&I) campaign.